On The Bus With The Redhill Valleys

We have another On The Bus With… segment for you. This one is with Hamilton natives The Redhill Valleys. We have had the opportunity to watch the band grow over the last couple years and we are super stoked to see them representing the Central Region in the Sirius XM Top of Country competition that is taking place right now you can head over and vote for them HERE. We had a chance to have the band answer a few questions for us while they were road trippin’ recently.

Q) Tell us a little about how the four of you came together to become RHV?

In the early days and during the release of our first album the band was originally a 3 piece. We knew we wanted a fuller sound and ultimately have Tim, who was playing drums at the time, up front because he’s also an amazing guitar player! He’s one of those multi-talented, multi-instrumentalists and at the time we really wished we could have cloned him, so we could have him play both drums and guitar. The songwriting partnership was flourishing between the three of us, we were incorporating a ton of harmonies, sharing lead vocals, and liked the idea of there not being just one ‘front person’, so finding a new drummer was our next mission. We had reached out online and anywhere we could think of to find a drummer, but it wasn’t until a late night trip to Walmart in Hamilton that we were approached by Matt. He had seen a music video we just released a couple of days before, and came up to us to say that he really liked it. He mentioned that he was a drummer and before he could even finish his sentence we immediately – standing right there in the TV aisle – invited him to jam with us. He was definitely the missing link, and that marked the moment that everything really started to come together.

Q) What is one thing you would love to tell people about yourselves that you have never been given the opportunity to say.

We really love breakfast. If we’re not rehearsing, we’re probably hanging out at one of our favourite breakfast spots in Hamilton.

Q) What is one song in your set list that the four of you just love jammin’ out to and why?

There are a few, but the one that comes to mind has to be “Ragged and Run Down”, written by our own Tim Allard. It has a lot of attitude in the opening riff alone and when the whole band finally kicks in it’s impossible not to have a good time in that moment. There’s also a great solo-off between Tim and Danielle that is always a ton of fun!

Q) One song you really wish as a band you would have recorded?

We have constant moments of “I wish I wrote that” everytime we listen to our favourite bands. One of the songs we bonded over as a band that we wish we wrote or recorded is probably “Winterlong” by Neil Young.

Q) How did the band get involved in the Sirius XM Top Of Country competition? And what were the deciding factors that made you put in an entry?

As an independent band, we’re always trying to keep our ear to the ground for new opportunities. We jumped at the chance to apply for Sirius XM Top of the Country as soon as we found out they were accepting artist submissions.

Q) What has it been like to make the top 9 out of hundreds of entries for competition?

When we first found out that we were among the top 9 finalists it was a huge shock! When we think of the amount of talent and all the killer bands out there, and the reach of this competition that spans the entire country, we know how lucky we are to be able to a part of it.

Q) Festival season is right around the corner where are you most excited to play this summer?

We love playing festivals! We are so excited for this summer, and are really happy to have been asked back to some great festivals such as Hagersville Rocks, Waterdown Ribfest, and Boots and Hearts. We will also be playing for the first time this summer at CountryFest in Paris, Ontario, the CMAOntario New Faces Showcases in London, Artsfest in Waterdown and the CNE in Toronto!

Q) Best advice so far in your careers?

The best advice that resonated with us was to always be kind to people. You meet a lot of new faces in this business from sound crews, production teams, other bands and artists, people in the media, and sometimes it can be under intense and stressful situations. You will almost always run into the same people so It’s important to leave an impression that would make someone want to work with you again in the future.

Q) We leave this one open to the artists. If there is anything you want to tell your fans or new listeners here it is. The floor is open…

The idea that we might actually have fans is a crazy concept for us. We’re thrilled any time someone new checks out our music, or comes to a show for the first time or sings along to one of our songs. We’re really appreciative of people who take the time to check out new bands like ours, and are open to hearing new music.